Switch-point-controlling device.



W. THORSTEINSON.

SWITCH POINT CONTROLLING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED 00114, 1912.

1,089,685. Patented Mar.10,191

WITNESSES lNvEn'roR.

. fits COLUMBIA PLANOORAPH CO.,WASH!NGTON. b, c.

l ldlh lt] SWITCH-POINT-CONTROLLING- DEVICE.

roeaess.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WALTER THORSTEIN- SON, of the city of Winnipeg, in the Province of Manitoba, Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Switcl1-Point-Controlling Devices, oi which the following is the specification.

The invention relates to a device for throwing switch points of railways, partioularly those of street car lines and the object of the invention is to provide an inexpensive, durable easily applied device which will effectively throw a switch point when operated the device being controlled from the car by the inotorinan.

It consists essentially in a pair of hooked bars located beneath the car floor slightly in advance of the car wheel flanges, such bars being supported and manipulated so that one or other can be swung downwardly to catch the switch point and then be moved in a direction across the track to pull the switch point to cause the car to take the switch, the parts being arranged and constructed as hereinafter more particularly described.

Figure 1 represents a front view of a car with my device applied parts being broken away to expose construction. Fig. 2 represents a plan view of the car and a portion of the track showing the switch point, part of the car being broken away to expose construction. Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view through the apparatus to an enlarged scale, the section being taken in the plane denoted by the line XX Fig. 1 the box and parts contained thereby being shown in plan view. Fig. 4t is an enlarged detailed side elevation of the upper end of one of the foot trips.

In the drawing like characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in each figure.

1 represents a street car of ordinary construction of which 2 is the vestibule, 3 the front butter, 4 the floor, 5 the controller, and 6 the front trucks provided with the usual flanged wheels 7 and 8 which ride on the tracks 9 and 10.

11 represents a switch point pivoted on an upright pin 12 as is customary and designed to turn the car on to the side tracks 13 and 14.

15 is a horizontally disposed open ended box carried by two brackets 16 and 17 pass ing upwardly to the car floor where they Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 1 1912.

Patented llllar. 1d, 191%. Serial No. 725,585.

are permanently fastened. The box receives slidably the inner ends of two opposing siinilar rack bars 18 and 19 receiving between them a pinion 20 carried by an upwardly directed shaft 21 having the lower end suitably mounted in the box and the body portion thereof suitably mounted in the car floor. The upper end of the shaft enters the vestibule and is fitted with a hand lever 22 positioned conveniently to the niotorinan. and 24; are two oppositely directed bars having their inner ends pivotally secured by pins 25 to the outer ends of the rack bars. The outer ends of the bars are hooked at 26 and 27 which hooks are designed to catch and pull over the switch points of the car tracks when operated as shortly described. The bars 2 1- and 25 are supported by upright rods 28 and 29 pivotally secured by pins 30 to the rods and having the body portion thereof slidably mounted in brackets 31 secured to the car floor. The rods protrude through the car floor and have their upper ends enlarged to form foot pedals or trips 32. Spiral springs 33 encircle the rods and have their lower ends resting on the brackets 31 and their upper ends engaging with cross pins 34; carried by the respective rods. These springs tend normally to hold the rods carrying the hooked bars in their upper positions. The rods are each provided with ofiset lugs 85 arranged to pass behind extending shoulders 36 formed as part of the brackets 31. This arrangement is simply to permit the inotorinan to leave either one of the rods down without retaining his foot on the pedal. It will be seen that if the rod be pushed down far enough the lug 35 will catch on the shoulder and prevent the rec from returning. It can be released however by siinply pushing the upper end of the rod sidewisc.

The device is operated in the following manner :.'iissruning the car is approaching the switch as best shown in Fig. 2 of the drawing and that the inotorinan desires the car to take the switch, that is to pass on to the rails 13 and 1 1. All that he has to do is to first turn the lever 22 to extend the bar until the hook 26 passes to a position almost directly above the slot indicated at A be tween the switch point and the track 1 1, then depress the right toot pedal to pass the hook 26 into the slot A, and finally turn the lever to withdraw the bars. This will cause the switch point to be pulled over and accordingly the car will pass onto the rails 13 and lt. Although both the bars 23 and 24s move when the rod 21 is turned still this is not detrimental as only one of them is de pressed at a time depending on whether the switch point is on the right or left hand side of the track;

IVhat I claim as my invention is 1- 1. In a switch point controlling device for cars the combination with the car, of a plurality of pivotally supported oppositely extending catch bars located beneath the front. end of the car in advance of the car wheels, said bars being provided with hooked ends, means for varying the distance between the hooked ends of the bars and depressible means suspending the bars in a more or less horizontal position, as and for the purpose specified.

2. In a switch point controlling device for cars the combination with the car, of a plu rality of oppositely extending pivotally mounted catch bars located beneath the front endof the car and in advance of the car wheels, said bars having their outer ends provided with hooks, means for withdrawing or extending the bars and depressible means suspending the outer ends of the bar clear of the rails, as and for the purpose specified.

3. In a switch point controlling device for cars the combination with the car, of a pair of slidably mounted rack bars carried by the car in advance of the front trucks, a pinion engaging with the rack bars, means operated from the car for rotating the pinion and thereby extending or withdrawing the rack bars, catch bars pivotally secured to the outer ends of the rack bars, said catch bars having their outer ends provided with hooks, and depressible means normally supporting the catch bars clear of the track rails, as and for the purpose specified.

i. In a switch point controlling device for cars the combination with the car, of an open ended box suitably suspended beneath the car in advance of the front trucks, an upright shaft mounted centrally in the box and passing upwardly into the car vestibule, means located in the vestibule for turn ing the shaft, a pinion fixed on the shaft and contained within the box, a pair of rack bars slidably mounted in the box and engaging with the pinion, a pair of oppositely extending catch bars having the inner ends pivotally secured to the outer ends of the rack bars and their outer ends provided with downwardly directed hooks, and depressible means normally suspending the outer ends of the hooked bars clear of the track rails, as and for the purpose specified.

5. In a switch point controlling device for cars the combination with the car, of an open ended box suitably suspended beneath the car in advance of the front trucks, an upright shaft mounted centrally in the box and passing upwardly into the car vestibule, means located in the vestibule for turning the shaft, a pinion fixed on the shaft and contained within the box a pair of rack bars slidably mounted in the box and engaging with the pinion, a pair of oppositely extending catch bars having the inner ends pivotally secured to the outer ends of the rack bars and the outer ends provided with downwardly directed hooks, rods secured to the catch bars and passing upwardly through the car fioor into the vestibule, said rods having their upper ends provided with foot trips and spiral springs suspending the rods, as and for the purpose specified.

6. In a switch point controlling device for cars the combination with the car, of an open ended box suitably suspended beneath the car in advance of the front trucks, an upright shaft mounted centrally in the box and passing upwardly into the car vestibule, means located in the vestibule for turning the shaft, a pinion fixed on the shaft and contained within the box, a pair of rack bars slidably mounted in the box and engaging with the pinion, a pair of oppositely extending catch bars having the inner ends pivotally secured to the outer ends of the rack bars and the outer ends provided with downwardly directed hooks, rods secured to the catch bars and passing upwardly through the car floor into the vestibule, said rods having their upper ends provided with foot trips, brackets located on the car floor and receiving the rods slidably, spiral springs carried by the brackets and encircling the rods, cross pins carried by the rods and bearing on the upper ends of the springs and means for locking the rods in the depressed position when depressed.

Signed at .Vinnipeg this 17th day of June 1912.

G. S. Roxnunsn, L. Gonrn.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Eaten/u.

Washington, D. C. 

